Area in front of White House cleared due to unattended package

US Park Police and Secret Service officers cleared an area in front of the White House on Friday evening because of an unattended package left in front of the presidential building, a Reuters eyewitness said.

At around 8 p.m., officers moved pedestrians away from Pennsylvania Avenue, the street in front of the White House, and Lafayette Park, which faces the building. A package looking like a small black backpack had been left near the railings that separate the White House grounds from the street, the witness reported.